…I stood and immediately regretted it. The room began spinning again, and I steadied myself alongside the bed. Once my vision cleared, I walked slowly to the door I knew lead to the bathroom and entered it. Reaching the sink, I turned on the faucet and cupped some cold water in my hands. I was dehydrated but not to the point of my body shutting down. It must have been fewer days than I had originally thought since I arrived. A few more sips of the cool tap, and I was already starting to feel a little better.

I made my way back into the main room, and I noticed that Demetri's cloak, the one he had left me that first night, was lying neatly over the back of one of the chairs next to the fireplace. I crossed the room and sat in the chair opposite, bringing my knees up to my chest and resting my head. My eyes casually closed, and I began humming a nonsense tune to myself.

Within minutes, I heard the door to the room opening again. My eyes quickly opened, and I peered around the back of the chair to see Demetri holding a small bowl in his hands. He walked my way and placed it on a center table in between the two chairs. He took the seat his cloak had covered and crossed his right leg across the other, sturdy and relaxed.

Whatever was in the bowl he placed on the table smelled wonderful, and my stomach let out a soft growl. He smiled. "It's acquacotta."

I dropped my legs and scooted forward in my seat so I was closer to the table. I reached out carefully for the bowl and brought it to me. There was a spoon already submerged, so I took a hold of it and brought some of the broth to my lips. It was delicious, but had it been awful, I would not have cared.

"Take it slow. It's been a few days since you've eaten anything." Demetri watched me dutifully as I heeded his warning and slowly sipped more broth from the spoon.

It had a warming effect which was welcomed in the chilly atmosphere. I took in another half spoonful before looking at the window across the room. With the drapes blocking it, the room was ever so dim, and it did not look like there were any lights to speak of.

Demetri noticed my gaze, and my eyes went back to him and followed as he stood from his seat and slowly walked toward the window. He found what he was looking for and pulled a small cord which parted the drapes so the light could shine in. He was mindful of his proximity to it, staying in the shadows against the wall.

"I apologize if you were frightened earlier. I don't think he expected you to go into shock." His voice was genuine yet cautious of bringing up the subject. "We sometimes forget how fragile the human mind can be."

I went back to focusing on my bowl of my soup. I had nothing to say really. I was not angry with him for what had happened, but I was slightly afflicted. While Aro had been mainly inquisitive, Demetri seemed somewhat distant. I took it as his way of playing it safe with me so what happened did not happen again.

He continued to stand in the shadows, and I looked up at him once or twice while finishing my meal. I sat back in the chair and focused on the carpet that covered the floor. The design was intricate and most likely Persian. The carpet itself was a pure ivory, and the metallic gold design knotted into it perfectly matched the bedding. I could only imagine that it had cost a fortune.

"It was a gift from an old friend of Aro's."

"It's pretty."

He grinned. "Feeling better then?"

"I guess."

Demetri came out of the shadows then and walked up to where I was sitting. "But you're still troubled?"

Nodding, I took a deep breath and bowed my head. "Demetri?"

He answered me nonchalantly, perhaps surprised at my use of his name. "What is it?"

"What if everything I read when I was younger about mythical creatures and places weren't myth at all? What if all of it was true? They wouldn't be part of my imagination anymore, would they?" My voice came out in a whisper, but I knew he caught every word. I looked up into burgundy eyes to see the kind grin return.

"I suppose they wouldn't."

"Then that means that this place is real," I paused. "And that you're real."

"I'm right in front of you, aren't I?" He was amused with me, and at least that was something. He held his hand out for me to take, and I did. Pulling me up from my seat, he held me there in front of him, his hands grasping my forearms lightly. I did not know if I should be afraid, but I wasn't. He leaned in so far that his lips now grazed my waiting neck, and as he spoke, I felt the tickle of his breath on my skin. "You appear so calm," he traced one of his fingers up the vein of my arm to my chest, "but your heart, it's fluttering."

He was right. My heart felt like it wanted to burst out of my chest. It was not from fear, for that had passed, or so I thought. It was from the intimacy of the situation. He was so close to me, closer than I was comfortable with anyone being. It wasn't like Aro who had done so out of intrigue. This was direct, maybe even sensual.

"Does this bother you? My being so close?" He waited a second for a response, but I was silent. When he released me, he took a step back right before a knock resounded on the door. He turned as it opened and a female vampire joined us in the room. "Heidi, what are you doing here?"

Her voice was fluid as if it was gliding over silk, but it was her incomparable beauty and how she accentuated it that most caught my attention. She stood in a short navy, blue dress that split right below her upper thighs and cut low into a V-neck. "I was on my way out and before leaving I wanted to see what all the fuss was about with this human you brought in."

"And now you've seen her. Don't you have business to attend to?" Demetri's words were that of a scolding, but his tone was opposite, quite playful. I thought that perhaps they were lovers, if vampires had that sort of thing.

From most of what I had read, vampires only used their charm to attract human lovers to them so they could feed off of their blood. Perhaps that part was still true however many other parts may not have been. For instance, Aro had not turned to ash when the sunlight hit him. On the contrary, he burst into a million reflections of light. At least the theory behind vampires exploding in the sun made sense. To one less educated, it probably did look as such.

"But Demetri, I haven't even said a word to her yet." She nudged him over and stood in front of me. "Aren't you an interesting one? So it's true then, your blood has no scent? Peculiar indeed." Then she smiled. "Hello, I'm Heidi."

I returned the gesture. "Sara."

It was then she looked at my attire and grimaced. "Demetri! How could you let her walk around in such garments? They're falling off of her."

I could have sworn I saw Demetri roll his eyes before answering. "Buy some clothes that will fit her then while you're out. I borrowed these from Renata since she's so small. I thought they might work."

"Never let a man pick out anything for you. He'll get something wrong every time." The comment was meant as an open address than to anyone in particular, but I couldn't help the quiet giggle that came out of me. "I'll see what I can do." She turned back to Demetri. "She'll be staying then?"

"For now, I gather."

"Don't have too much fun without me. I'll be back tonight," and with that, Heidi disappeared from the room.

Now that I knew what they were, the gone in the speed of light thing did not seem to bother me as much as before. At least there was a sensible reason if not entirely logical for their speed. My rational mind could not wrap around that, but the part that spent all it's time fantasizing about escaping into a more exciting existence could.

"Sorry about that," Demetri apologized. "She is right, though. You do need clothing that actually fits you so you can be more presentable."

"Presentable for what?"

"When they call for you."

"They?" I thought I understood who he was talking about. After all, the three of them did seem to be the ones in charge.

His brow furrowed at me asking what should have been an obvious. "The Masters."

Curiosity took over, and the last thing I wanted was to sit in silence and let the tension build up again like before, so I asked, "Why do you call them that? Are they the ones over the coven?" The last word felt awkward to say, but that is what it was.

"Yes."

"Do other covens exist like this one?"

Demetri sighed probably realizing that the questions would continue for a while. "There are others, yes, but they're not at all like ours. You should relay these questions by Aro. I'm unsure of how much he wants you to know of our world."

"Then can I ask something more pertinent to you?" I could tell that he was not keen on conversing with me, but I did have so many questions pouring through my mind. His reticence was suffocating.

"That depends."

"How old are you?"

He left where he was standing to go back to the seat he had occupied after first entering the room. "Age is meaningless to one who is immortal."

I faced him. "Then how old were you?"

"Nineteen."

"Are most vampires around that young?"

At that he had laughed, but it was not a laugh full of humor. It was diffident. I continued to watch him, and he looked to the fireplace instead. "There are at least a couple who are much younger, younger even than you. Be sure you don't cross them."

"What's that supposed to mean," I wondered out loud.

"Let's hope you never find out."

I did not leave the garden right away. I had too many thoughts going through my head. What had gotten into him anyway? Demetri had always held a soft spot for me, I knew this from over the years, but this was too much. I had not meant to upset him, nor did I expect him to be, but for him to take off on me when he knew Aro did not want me left alone spoke much to that. I was sure Demetri had not gone too far. He was probably close and watching my reaction. Aro's wrath was something no one wanted to suffer.

The wind was growing stronger by the minute, and I shivered, deciding it was time to walk back into the castle before it got worse. Even though the sun was out, it was still hidden by the white cloud and standing in the shade did no good to keep me warm.

I went back through the gate and made my way across the inner courtyard and through the arched doors leading back into the building. Once inside, I took a look around expecting someone to materialize beside me, but he never showed. I frowned and began walking down the hall, stopping when I reached the fork. There was no sense in trying to choose a direction. I had been lost in this place once a very long time ago, but the memory was still fresh in my mind.

A/N: Thank you to those who have followed or added this to their favorites. I also like to hear what you all think, so jot a few lines down in the review box to let me know.

-Maali